Within the Bodleian, we have been marking up catalogue records
directly in SGML format using SoftQuad's SGML authoring package, Author/Editor.
A blank sample record is used by the cataloguer as a template [mdash ]
each important section within the template is marked by an identifying
number, which corresponds to an entry in a detailed cataloguing manual
designed specifically for this project. The manual provides the
cataloguer with information on what is required within a given element,
how it should be expressed, and what attributes are used. In practice,
we have found that marking up a record directly into TEI takes little
longer than producing a version in a standard word-processor. The bulk
of the time spent producing a record in fact is taken up by the
bibliographic analysis of the item, rather than the encoding of
cataloguing details in TEI format.

Once a record is complete, the cataloguer validates it, exports it
from Author/Editor's proprietary format into SGML, and moves
it to a specified directory on our server. Here it is processed in batch
mode by a script which loads it onto our in-house WWW system.